Chapter 1171: Onslaught

「Now then, we can’t keep talking forever. Let’s meet up with the army for now… Oof.」

「Maleficent, are you okay?」

Maleficent stumbled as he tried to walk off.

While he certainly looked calm, using his divine sword must have been incredibly draining.

「I kept Hell active for a bit longer than usual this time. I’m confident in my stamina since I harbor the power of a demon, but I have to admit there is some fatigue.」

Fran’s gaze shifted towards Maleficent’s head, where he had grown horns.

The short, twisted horns were a different shape from the ones on ogrekin like Donadrond.

「This is the price of Hell, you see. The demon is gradually taking over my body.」

「…! You’ll turn into a demon?」

「Eventually, yes. If I didn’t have Persona with me.」

「…!」

Persona tightly clenched both hands in front of her chest, as if telling Fran to leave it to her.

So Persona’s power can prevent him from turning into a demon? Or maybe the compulsion from Eternal Loyalty wins out over the demonic will? In any case, Maleficent doesn’t appear to be under the demon’s control at the moment.

「We can ride Urushi.」

「Woof!」

「…I’ll take you up on that offer.」

「…」

Urushi lowered his body, allowing Maleficent to jump on his back while still carrying Persona. It seems he can move to some extent.

「In any case, my divine sword has finally been exposed to the light. Things may get bothersome now.」

「…」

Maleficent and Persona both slumped their shoulders simultaneously. It seems they were trying to hide this fact.

Stories of him being a divine sword wielder will almost certainly spread like wildfire, since many soldiers witnessed the battle.

Moreover, anyone who recognizes his divine sword as Hell may also realize Maleficent’s true identity.

He has settled down thanks to Persona, but that doesn’t change the fact that he was originally the leader of a criminal organization. There may be some who, unlike Fran, refuse to let him walk free.

That said, there’s no way to keep it a secret anymore.

Perhaps Persona could manage somehow, but extending her powers over such a huge population will no doubt put a huge strain on her. Even attempting would probably cause irreparable damage.

In this world, the stronger the skill or magic, the greater the recoil and pitfalls.

Persona collapsed after using a bit of her power, so I doubt she’s capable of something on such a huge scale.

「…You want to run?」

This was Fran’s way of showing concern. If they chose to run, Fran was willing to keep their secrets and refrain from chasing them.

However, Maleficent shook his head at the idea.

「Running is no longer… Huh?」

「There’s something there!」

In the middle of our conversation, both Maleficent and Fran suddenly shifted into battle stances. We were just about to reach the Kranzel army’s makeshift camp, when someone appeared out of nowhere.

Moreover, this someone was radiating a huge amount of evil energy.

「Urushi, hurry!」

「Woof!」

Urushi tried to accelerate his flight speed, but disaster struck just before we arrived. A black ooze-like substance seeped out from the ground, took a humanoid shape, then started attacking the nearby people.

This shadowy figure had almost zero physical power, and the soldiers struck by its claws weren’t even bleeding. Yet anyone hit immediately turned pale and collapsed to the ground.

The soldiers must have had their live forces drained. And not just that, they were being infused with evil energy.

I confirmed that the soldier’s condition had become “Evil Intoxication”. This is a status ailment that occurs when someone is exposed to more evil energy than they can handle.

「Hah!」

「Grr!」

We arrived at camp and hit the shadow with a spell, erasing it in a single hit. It seems they weren’t particularly strong.

However, the issue lied in their numbers.

The shadows kept appearing one after another.

Apparently, the same phenomenon was occurring throughout the entire camp.

「Oh, pitiful souls who wander the underworld! Become my spears and impale my enemies! Summon Soldier Skeletons!」

Jean sent various orders to the adventurers before summoning a large number of skeletons with his spell.

「Fran, I see you’ve returned! However, it seems we have no time to exchange greetings! I shall take care of this area!」

「Got it!」

It’s probably best to stick together since we don’t know what’s going on, but we’re forced to split up due to the lack of manpower.

We headed off toward where the evil energy first appeared.

A familiar-looking man was standing at the center of the camp, the guy radiating evil was standing next to Nameless earlier.

However, the evil aura cloaking him now was much stronger than the last time we saw him. It’s almost as if he was an entirely different person with the same appearance.

The suspicious man turned to Fran and smirked.

「Hehehe! You’ve come! Black Lightning Princess!」

「Who are you?」

「The people of this country call me Onslaught, and I am a humble fiendmancer!」

So he’s Onslaught! But why did he suddenly show up alone?

He’s definitely strong, but not strong enough to charge into the enemy camp and take on Fran, Maleficent, and Jean all by himself.

Trying to draw out his true intentions, Fran questioned him in a hostile tone.

「Did you do this?」

「I love that stare of yours! Heheheh! Yeah, this is all me! But I’ll withdraw immediately once I’ve achieved my goal!」

The slim, black-haired, handsome man shouted back in a high-pitched voice. I could see him being a prince-like idol back on Earth, in stark contrast with his manner of speaking. He sounded like some random mob enemy you might find anywhere.

My appraisal showed everything about him as “Unknown”. It seems his transformation into a fiend was already complete.

「Your goal?」

「Indeed! Allow me to explain!」

Onslaught’s eyes were fixed on Fran as he shouted his response. What? Did he have some business with Fran?

「Hehehehe! Black Lightning Princess! I want you!」

『WHAAAAT?!』